This month held special family firsts for Jackson, Travis and I. We packed our ski gear and flew off to Colorado. Jackson had two things to say about his first flight. "loud" and "fast" Our flight was less than an hour and a half and he did awesome. He was easily entertained and was seemingly not affected by the air travel and altitude changes. The fact that he was finally cutting his I-teeth and the hour time change seemed to be bigger factors involved in his less than enthusiastic temperament.
He was adorable in his under armour and was quite agreeable every time we had to gear up to go out and play in the snow. He knew when he was finally in the snow and he could eat it made it all worth the multiple layers of clothing. He loves to eat snow. As aside note, when we received two snow storms in Oklahoma prior to leaving for Colorado, it was too cold outside to go out and play, so Travis brought in a cup of snow and let Jackson eat the snow. He was thrilled to eat snow! I had to cut him off since it was dinner time!
Jackson was too young and too small to ski so I sought out other family activities. Keystone was full of outdoor fun for the three of us. We were able to ride up to the top of the mountain via the Gondola, which is an enclosed ski lift. We reached the top of the mountain where it was very cold and windy. We retreated to kidtopia where there was a castle made out of snow. Jackson and I went down a small slide and then followed Travis back behind the castle to find some unpacked snow to snack on. After the boys ganged up on me and bombarded me with snowballs, Jackson and Travis enjoyed snacking on some snow. It wasn't until Jackson ate the emergency snack of Teddy Grahams that I had stashed in the backpack that he became noticeably happier. I noted to Travis that the main times that Jackson was happy while we were vacationing was while he was eating.
It was warm during the day and by evening there was lots of ice on the ground. Because of the "high alpine environment" there was also packed snow on many sidewalks as well, and Jackson noticed. Travis and I loved Jackson's cautionary notices that he announced to whomever was carrying him on these icy trails. He would say, "careful daddy" if Travis was carrying him. We decided that he will make a great safety patrol officer someday!! We laughed over and over as he would say, "careful"!
We had a fun packed day three. We decided to seek out a snow tubing area in the morning, drive to Vail to take a look around so Jackson could nap in the car, and then take a horse drawn sleigh ride that afternoon. Jackson was a great snow tuber. He even went down the hill in the tube all by himself. He squealed ecstatically the whole way down, especially when he hit a bump and caught some air! Getting to the bottom of the small hill was a blast. Carrying Jackson up the hill while dragging the tube behind me was less than thrilling, but I simply can't resist him when he says, "hold you". It was all worth it to go down the hill with him and see him enjoy the thrill of going fast!
Later that afternoon the horse drawn sleigh ride was a hit too. We had a twenty minute bus ride to the sleigh area and Cheetos managed to keep him happy. Like I said before, he was happy every time he ate! Jackson enjoyed the ride and kept a close eye on the dog that ran along with us during the entire ride. The area was preserved by the National Forest and was quiet, pristine, and peaceful.
Just so it is notated for historical preservation. I cooked a meal from a box so that an exhausted Jackson would not have to sit still in a restaurant. We sat down to eat to what looked like a less than appetizing meal. I told Travis he didn't have to eat it and he could go out and get something else to eat. He noted that in near seven years of marriage we have never given up on a meal that I made and gone out to eat. I blamed it on the box and the high altitude and we headed to Subway!
Lessons learned on our vacation to Colorado: Two year olds may be too young to vacation so far away from home. Always be "careful" when walking in a "high alpine environment". Don't cook from complete boxed meals. Always bring your favorite pillow from home, and most importantly just because you lost an hour don't go to bed at 9 pm.
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